The invention relates generally to the art of making sports and athletic footwear including skate boots suitable for use on ice skate blade or on in-line roller skate chassis. The invention relates in particular to a footbed which is a particular sport footwear components that receives the foot of the wearer inside the footwear for providing the required degree of comfort and support.
Traditionally, skate boots and footwear in general, are constructed over a last of a specific shoe size. A last is a three-dimensional shape of the inside walls of the footwear on which the upper of the footwear is formed. Once the upper is completed, an outer sole is glued or nailed to the upper and an insole covering the entire plantar surface of the foot is inserted into the upper to provide the cushioning means of the footwear. A typical insole may incorporate sidewalls, which surrounds the heel in order to center the foot inside the footwear and a small bulge in the midfoot area adapted to support the inside arch of the foot.
A wide array of insole designs has been introduced to increase the level of comfort and support afforded by a footwear, some of which are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,544,432, U.S. Pat. No. 5,778,562, U.S. Pat. No. 4,800,657, U.S. Pat. No. 4,510,700, U.S. Pat. No. 5,146,698, and U.S. Pat. No. 2,537,156.
In general, sport footwear are either made traditionally over a last and incorporate an innersole covering the plantar surface of the foot or are made of a molded plastic shell combined with an inner soft boot completely enclosing the foot and portion of the ankle and lower leg.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,339,544 discloses an athletic shoe such for football, soccer and track and field shoe constructed of a rear molded plastic shell and a front upper made of soft material joined together at the mid-section. A lining, which protrudes from the front upper, is inserted into the rear shell when the two parts are assembled providing the necessary cushioning means. An insole is inserted into the shoe, covering the foot-resting region. This type of shoe construction also allows the used of a rear shell for a range of shoe size. The rear shell may be used with front uppers of different length and width thereby minimizing the number of shells needed to put on the market a full range of sizes of a specific footwear product line. The shortcoming of this construction is that an insole, a front upper and a lining are required for each shoe size.
In light of these various designs, there is a need for a footbed adapted for a footwear construction comprising a molded plastic shell or for a traditionally made footwear capable of defining the size of the footwear so constructed while providing the necessary level of support and comfort for the sporting activity the footwear is designed for.
It is thus an object of the invention to provide a footbed adapted for determining the size of a sport footwear in terms of width.
It is another object of the invention to provide a footbed adapted for determining the size of a sport footwear in terms of length.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a footbed capable of supporting the foot according to the sporting activity the footwear is designed for.
As embodied and broadly described herein, the invention provides a footbed for use in a sport footwear having a foot receiving cavity. The footbed receives a wearer""s foot and provides foot support and comfort. The footbed comprises a sole portion having an upper surface generally following the contour of the plantar surface of a wearer""s foot; and a padding wall for separating the lower portion of the sides and heel of a wearer""s foot from the foot receiving cavity. The padding wall partially cups the wearer""s heel and extends from the back of the wearer""s foot along each side of the heel, along each side of the midfoot and along each side of the forefoot up to the roots of the toes. The footbed fits closely within the foot receiving cavity and the padding wall of the footbed are so constructed as to determine the size of sport footwear in terms of width. Advantageously, the padding wall also extends upwardly from the sole portion at least up to extending upwardly from said sole portion at least up to a medial line defined by the bones of the foot.
Furthermore, a variation of thickness of the padding wall modifies the width of the sport footwear. Advantageously, the footbed further comprises a toe wall portion for determining the size of the sport footwear in terms of length, wherein a variation of thickness of the toe wall portion modifies the length of the sport footwear. The toe wall portion can be a separate part or be integral to said padding wall.
Other objects and features of the invention will become apparent by reference to the following description and the drawings.